FR Doc E7-8185
[Federal Register: April 30, 2007 (Volume 72, Number 82)]
[Notices]
[Page 21249-21254]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30ap07-59]
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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services Overview
Information; Technology and Media Services for Individuals With
Disabilities--Institute on Technology Effectiveness for Children With
Disabilities: Web-Supported Instructional Approaches; Notice Inviting
Applications for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 2007
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.327W.
Dates:
Applications Available: April 30, 2007.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 30, 2007.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 30, 2007.
Eligible Applicants: State educational agencies (SEAs); local
educational agencies (LEAs); public charter schools that are LEAs under
State law; institutions of higher education (IHEs); other public
agencies; private nonprofit organizations; outlying areas; freely
associated States; Indian tribes or tribal organizations; and for-
profit organizations.
Estimated Available Funds: $500,000.
Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a
budget exceeding $500,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
may change the maximum amount through a notice published in the Federal
Register.
Number of Awards: 1.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
[[Page 21250]]
Full Text of Announcement
I. Funding Opportunity Description
Purpose of Program: The purpose of this program is to: (1) Improve
results for children with disabilities by promoting the development,
demonstration, and use of technology; (2) support educational media
services activities designed to be of educational value in the
classroom setting to children with disabilities; and (3) provide
support for captioning and video description that is appropriate for
use in the classroom setting.
Priority: In accordance with 34 CFR 75.105(b)(2)(iv), this priority
is from allowable activities specified in the statute (see sections 674
and 681(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)).
Absolute Priority: For FY 2007 this priority is an absolute
priority. Under 34 CFR 75.105(c)(3), we consider only applications that
meet this priority.
This priority is:
Technology and Media Services for Individuals with Disabilities--
Institute on Technology Effectiveness for Children with Disabilities:
Web-Supported Instructional Approaches.
Background
On September 26, 2006, we published a notice in the Federal
Register (71 FR 56133) inviting applications for new awards under the
Research on Technology Effectiveness and Implementation for Children
with Disabilities: Web-Supported Instructional Approaches competition.
We received several applications for grants under the competition;
however, we did not receive any fundable applications. To clarify our
intent and improve future applications, we changed the background
section and priority requirements and are reissuing the notice inviting
applications under a new title, Institute on Technology Effectiveness
for Children with Disabilities: Web-Supported Instructional Approaches.
A number of projects funded by the Office of Special Education
Programs (OSEP) have developed and tested World Wide Web-supported
approaches to improve educational results for children with
disabilities. In some cases, these projects have used generally
available Web resources (e.g., newspaper sites, museum sites, and
search engines). In other cases, the projects have developed
specialized Web sites (e.g., simulation of learning environments,
discussion boards, and strategy reminders) to improve student learning.
Web-supported educational approaches have a number of potential
benefits for students with disabilities. Web-based instruction is
distinct from other forms of instruction because of the availability of
multiple types of media (e.g., text, video, graphics, and audio), the
possibility of real time remote collaboration and communication, the
access it provides to vast quantities of information, and the ability
for students to participate in global classrooms. The Web also can
support varied learning strategies and activities that can be designed
to address different student needs. For example, it can provide
supports to compensate for learning difficulties, sensory impairments,
and academic skill deficits.
Research on the benefits of Web-supported approaches for students
with disabilities is limited. There also is little information about
whether Web-based resources that provide access for one population of
students creates accessibility barriers for others (e.g., graphic
features may not be accessible to students with visual impairments;
hyper-linked resources or graphic organizers may increase intellectual
demands and create barriers for students with cognitive disabilities).
Finally, the effectiveness of Web-supported instruction when widely
used in typical educational environments has not been fully explored.
Priority
This priority supports an institute to conduct a systematic program
of research on the use of Web-supported instructional approaches to
improve access to, and participation and progress in, the general
curriculum for students with disabilities. In carrying out its
research, the institute must apply the principles of universal design
(i.e., design of products that will be usable by children with
different disabilities, to the greatest extent possible, with minimal
need for additional adaptations).
In their applications, applicants must--
(a) Propose an operational definition of Web-supported instruction
and include the key features to be used in a program of research;
(b) Describe the applicant's access to existing Web-supported
instructional materials that will allow the institute to proceed
quickly with the research without substantial time devoted to
additional development;
(c) Propose instructional approaches and products to be examined;
these approaches and products must represent a range of features of
Web-supported instruction relevant to the education of students with
disabilities; and
(d) Present a plan to conduct a program of research to answer the
following questions: (1) Do the Web-supported instructional approaches
and products identified in (c) improve learning of academic content for
students with disabilities in educational settings with typical
resources and levels of teacher support? (2) What characteristics of
Web-supported instruction facilitate or impede access to, and learning
of, academic content for students with disabilities? (3) What student
characteristics (e.g., disability, age/grade level, technology skills)
and contextual factors (e.g., teacher training, hardware resources,
student groupings) influence the effectiveness of Web-supported
instruction?
This plan may focus on specific academic content areas or student
ages, but, at a minimum, must address research questions separately for
each of the following populations: students with learning disabilities,
students with mental retardation, students with visual impairments or
blindness, students with hearing impairments or deafness, students with
emotional disturbance, and students with physical disabilities.
The research is intended to test causal relationships and must
employ rigorous experimental designs using randomized assignment to
determine treatment effects.
Applicants must fully describe instruments and methodologies and
provide a power analysis to document that available sample sizes and
methodologies are sufficient to produce the precision needed to yield
conclusive findings. Experimental research may be supplemented with
qualitative or non-experimental methodologies, provided sufficient
rigor is maintained.
The majority of the research must be conducted in educational
environments using typical resources and levels of teacher support.
Once funded, the institute must--
(a) Establish a technical review board to review its operational
definition of Web-supported instructional approaches and its research
plans, and identify any needed improvements.
(b) Revise the institute's operational definition of Web-supported
instructional approaches and its research plan in accordance with
comments from the technical review board and input from the Department
of Education (Department).
(c) Conduct the program of research called for in its plan, as
revised, taking appropriate steps to ensure that the research is
rigorous and objective. Toward this end, the institute must
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maintain communication with the Department and the technical review
board to identify needed corrective actions.
(d) Disseminate findings to appropriate audiences. The institute
must submit reports for publication in peer-reviewed professional
journals and for presentation at professional conferences, and must
post reports on a Web site that meets a government or industry-
recognized standard for accessibility.
(e) Formulate and disseminate research-based guidelines for the
development and use of the Web to support instruction and to improve
access to, and participation and progress in, the general curriculum
for students with disabilities.
(f) Budget for a three-day Project Directors' meeting and a two-day
Technology Innovation meeting, each in Washington, DC, during each year
of the project.
(g) Budget five percent of the grant amount annually to support
emerging needs as identified jointly through consultation with the OSEP
project officer.
Waiver of Proposed Rulemaking: Under the Administrative Procedure
Act (APA) (5 U.S.C. 553), the Department generally offers interested
parties the opportunity to comment on proposed priorities. However,
section 681(d) of the IDEA makes the public comment requirements of the
APA inapplicable to the priority in this notice.
Program Authority: 20 U.S.C. 1474 and 1481.
Applicable Regulations: The Education Department General
Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) in 34 CFR parts 74, 75, 77, 79, 80,
81, 82, 84, 85, 86, 97, 98, and 99.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 79 apply to all applicants
except federally recognized Indian tribes.
Note: The regulations in 34 CFR part 86 apply to IHEs only.
II. Award Information
Type of Award: Cooperative agreement.
Estimated Available Funds: $500,000.
Maximum Award: We will reject any application that proposes a
budget exceeding $500,000 for a single budget period of 12 months. The
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services
may change the maximum amount through a notice published in the Federal
Register.
Estimated Number of Awards: 1.
Note: The Department is not bound by any estimates in this
notice.
Project Period: Up to 60 months.
III. Eligibility Information
1. Eligible Applicants: SEAs; LEAs; public charter schools that are
LEAs under State law; IHEs; other public agencies; private nonprofit
organizations; outlying areas; freely associated States; Indian tribes
or tribal organizations; and for-profit organizations.
2. Cost Sharing or Matching: This competition does not involve cost
sharing or matching.
3. Other: General Requirements--
(a) The projects funded under this competition must make positive
efforts to employ and advance in employment qualified individuals with
disabilities (see section 606 of IDEA).
(b) Applicants and grant recipients funded under this competition
must involve individuals with disabilities or parents of individuals
with disabilities ages birth through 26 in planning, implementing, and
evaluating the projects (see section 682(a)(1)(A) of IDEA).
IV. Application and Submission Information
1. Address to Request Application Package: Education Publications
Center (ED Pubs), P.O. Box 1398, Jessup, MD 20794-1398. Telephone (toll
free): 1-877-433-7827. Fax: (301) 470-1244. If you use a
telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may call (toll free):
1-877-576-7734.
You may also contact ED Pubs at its Web site: http://www.ed.gov/pubs/edpubs.html
or you may contact ED Pubs at its e-mail address: edpubs@inet.ed.gov.
If you request an application from ED Pubs, be sure to identify
this competition as follows: CFDA number 84.327W.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain a copy of the application
package in an alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
audiotape, or computer diskette) by contacting the Grants and Contracts
Services Team listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT in section
VII of this notice.
2. Content and Form of Application Submission: Requirements
concerning the content of an application, together with the forms you
must submit, are in the application package for this competition.
Page Limit: The application narrative (Part III of the application)
is where you, the applicant, address the selection criteria that
reviewers use to evaluate your application. You must limit Part III to
the equivalent of no more than 70 pages, using the following standards:
A ``page'' is 8.5 x 11, on one side
only, with 1 margins at the top, bottom, and both sides.
Double space (no more than three lines per vertical inch)
all text in the application narrative, including titles, headings,
footnotes, quotations, references, and captions, as well as all text in
charts, tables, figures, and graphs.
Use a font that is either 12-point or larger or no smaller
than 10 pitch (characters per inch).
The page limit does not apply to Part I, the cover sheet; Part II,
the budget section, including the narrative budget justification; Part
IV, the assurances and certifications; or the one-page abstract, the
resumes, the bibliography, the references, or the letters of support.
However, you must include all of the application narrative in Part III.
We will reject your application if--
You apply these standards and exceed the page limit; or
You apply other standards and exceed the equivalent of the
page limit.
3. Submission Dates and Times:
Applications Available: April 30, 2007.
Deadline for Transmittal of Applications: May 30, 2007.
Applications for grants under this competition may be submitted
electronically using the Grants.gov Apply site (Grants.gov), or in
paper format by mail or hand delivery. For information (including dates
and times) about how to submit your application electronically, or by
mail or hand delivery, please refer to section IV.6. Other Submission
Requirements in this notice.
We do not consider an application that does not comply with the
deadline requirements.
Individuals with disabilities who need an accommodation or
auxiliary aid in connection with the application process should contact
the person listed under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT.
Deadline for Intergovernmental Review: July 30, 2007.
4. Intergovernmental Review: This program is subject to Executive
Order 12372 and the regulations in 34 CFR part 79. Information about
Intergovernmental Review of Federal Programs under Executive Order
12372 is in the application package for this competition.
5. Funding Restrictions: We reference regulations outlining funding
restrictions in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice.
6. Other Submission Requirements: Applications for grants under
this competition may be submitted
[[Page 21252]]
electronically or in paper format by mail or hand delivery.
a. Electronic Submission of Applications.
To comply with the President's Management Agenda, we are
participating as a partner in the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site.
The Institute on Technology Effectiveness for Children with
Disabilities: Web-Supported Instructional Approaches competition--CFDA
number 84.327W is included in this project. We request your
participation in Grants.gov.
If you choose to submit your application electronically, you must
use the Governmentwide Grants.gov Apply site at http://www.Grants.gov.
Through this site, you will be able to download a copy of the
application package, complete it offline, and then upload and submit
your application. You may not e-mail an electronic copy of a grant
application to us.
You may access the electronic grant application for the Institute
on Technology Effectiveness for Children with Disabilities: Web-
Supported Instructional Approaches competition at: http://www.grants.gov.
You must search for the downloadable application
package for this program by the CFDA number. Do not include the CFDA
number's alpha suffix in your search (e.g., search for 84.327, not
84.327W).
Please note the following:
Your participation in Grants.gov is voluntary.
When you enter the Grants.gov site, you will find
information about submitting an application electronically through the
site, as well as the hours of operation.
Applications received by Grants.gov are date and time
stamped. Your application must be fully uploaded and submitted and must
be date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system no later than 4:30
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. Except as
otherwise noted in this section, we will not consider your application
if it is date and time stamped by the Grants.gov system later than 4:30
p.m., Washington, DC time, on the application deadline date. When we
retrieve your application from Grants.gov, we will notify you if we are
rejecting your application because it was date and time stamped by the
Grants.gov system after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, on the
application deadline date.
The amount of time it can take to upload an application
will vary depending on a variety of factors including the size of the
application and the speed of your Internet connection. Therefore, we
strongly recommend that you do not wait until the application deadline
date to begin the submission process through Grants.gov.
You should review and follow the Education Submission
Procedures for submitting an application through Grants.gov that are
included in the application package for this competition to ensure that
you submit your application in a timely manner to the Grants.gov
system. You can also find the Education Submission Procedures
pertaining to Grants.gov at
http://e-Grants.ed.gov/help/GrantsgovSubmissionProcedures.pdf.
To submit your application via Grants.gov, you must
complete all steps in the Grants.gov registration process (see
http://www.grants.gov/applicants/get_registered.jsp
). These steps include (1)
registering your organization, a multi-part process that includes
registration with the Central Contractor Registry (CCR); (2)
registering yourself as an Authorized Organization Representative
(AOR); and (3) getting authorized as an AOR by your organization.
Details on these steps are outlined in the Grants.gov 3-Step
Registration Guide (see
http://www.grants.gov/section910/Grants.govRegistrationBrochure.pdf).
You also must provide on your
application the same D-U-N-S Number used with this registration. Please
note that the registration process may take five or more business days
to complete, and you must have completed all registration steps to
allow you to submit successfully an application via Grants.gov. In
addition you will need to update your CCR registration on an annual
basis. This may take three or more business days to complete.
You will not receive additional point value because you
submit your application in electronic format, nor will we penalize you
if you submit your application in paper format.
If you submit your application electronically, you must
submit all documents electronically, including all information you
typically provide on the following forms: Application for Federal
Assistance (SF 424), the Department of Education Supplemental
Information for SF 424, Budget Information--Non-Construction Programs
(ED 524), and all necessary assurances and certifications. Please note
that two of these forms--the SF 424 and the Department of Education
Supplemental Information for SF 424--have replaced the ED 424
(Application for Federal Education Assistance).
If you submit your application electronically, you must
attach any narrative sections of your application as files in a .DOC
(document), .RTF (rich text) or .PDF (Portable Document) format. If you
upload a file type other than the three file types specified in this
paragraph or submit a password-protected file, we will not review that
material.
Your electronic application must comply with any page-
limit requirements described in this notice.
After you electronically submit your application, you will
receive from Grants.gov an automatic notification of receipt that
contains a Grants.gov tracking number. (This notification indicates
receipt by Grants.gov only, not receipt by the Department.) The
Department then will retrieve your application from Grants.gov and send
a second notification to you by e-mail. This second notification
indicates that the Department has received your application and has
assigned your application a PR/Award number (an ED-specified
identifying number unique to your application).
We may request that you provide us original signatures on
forms at a later date.
Application Deadline Date Extension in Case of Technical Issues
with the Grants.gov System: If you are experiencing problems submitting
your application through Grants.gov, please contact the Grants.gov
Support Desk at 1-800-518-4726. You must obtain a Grants.gov Support
Desk Case Number and must keep a record of it. If you are prevented
from electronically submitting your application on the application
deadline date because of technical problems with the Grants.gov system,
we will grant you an extension until 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time,
the following business day to enable you to transmit your application
electronically or by hand delivery. You also may mail your application
by following the mailing instructions described elsewhere in this
notice. If you submit an application after 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC
time, on the application deadline date, please contact the person
listed elsewhere in this notice under FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT
and provide an explanation of the technical problem you experienced
with Grants.gov, along with the Grants.gov Support Desk Case Number. We
will accept your application if we can confirm that a technical problem
occurred with the Grants.gov system and that that problem affected your
ability to submit your application by 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time,
on the application deadline date. The Department will contact you after
a determination is made on
[[Page 21253]]
whether your application will be accepted.
Note: The extensions to which we refer in this section apply
only to the unavailability of, or technical problems with, the
Grants.gov system. We will not grant you an extension if you failed
to fully register to submit your application to Grants.gov before
the application deadline date and time or if the technical problem
you experienced is unrelated to the Grants.gov system.
b. Submission of Paper Applications by Mail.
If you submit your application in paper format by mail (through the
U.S. Postal Service or a commercial carrier), you must mail the
original and two copies of your application, on or before the
application deadline date, to the Department at the applicable
following address:
By mail through the U.S. Postal Service: U.S. Department of Education,
Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number 84.327W), 400
Maryland Avenue, SW., Washington, DC 20202-4260; or
By mail through a commercial carrier: U.S. Department of Education,
Application Control Center--Stop 4260, Attention: (CFDA Number
84.327W), 7100 Old Landover Road, Landover, MD 20785-1506.
Regardless of which address you use, you must show proof of mailing
consisting of one of the following:
(1) A legibly dated U.S. Postal Service postmark.
(2) A legible mail receipt with the date of mailing stamped by the
U.S. Postal Service.
(3) A dated shipping label, invoice, or receipt from a commercial
carrier.
(4) Any other proof of mailing acceptable to the Secretary of the
U.S. Department of Education.
If you mail your application through the U.S. Postal Service, we do
not accept either of the following as proof of mailing:
(1) A private metered postmark.
(2) A mail receipt that is not dated by the U.S. Postal Service.
If your application is postmarked after the application deadline
date, we will not consider your application.
Note: The U.S. Postal Service does not uniformly provide a dated
postmark. Before relying on this method, you should check with your
local post office.
c. Submission of Paper Applications by Hand Delivery.
If you submit your application in paper format by hand delivery,
you (or a courier service) must deliver the original and two copies of
your application by hand, on or before the application deadline date,
to the Department at the following address: U.S. Department of
Education, Application Control Center, Attention: (CFDA Number
84.327W), 550 12th Street, SW., Room 7041, Potomac Center Plaza,
Washington, DC 20202-4260.
The Application Control Center accepts hand deliveries daily
between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Washington, DC time, except Saturdays,
Sundays and Federal holidays.
Note for Mail or Hand Delivery of Paper Applications: If you mail
or hand deliver your application to the Department--
(1) You must indicate on the envelope and--if not provided by the
Department--in Item 11 of the SF 424 the CFDA number, including suffix
letter, if any, of the competition under which you are submitting your
application; and
(2) The Application Control Center will mail to you a notification
of receipt of your grant application. If you do not receive this
notification within 15 business days from the application deadline
date, you should call the U.S. Department of Education Application
Control Center at (202) 245-6288.
V. Application Review Information
1. Selection Criteria: The selection criteria for this competition
are from 34 CFR 75.210 and are listed in the application package.
2. Review and Selection Process:
Treating a Priority as Two Separate Competitions: In the past,
there have been problems in finding peer reviewers without conflicts of
interest for competitions in which many entities throughout the country
submit applications. The Standing Panel requirements under IDEA also
have placed additional constraints on the availability of reviewers.
Therefore, the Department has determined that, for some discretionary
competitions, applications may be separated into two or more groups and
ranked and selected for funding within the specific group. This
procedure will ensure the availability of a much larger group of
reviewers without conflicts of interest. It also will increase the
quality, independence and fairness of the review process and permit
panel members to review applications under discretionary competitions
for which they have also submitted applications. However, if the
Department decides to select for funding an equal number of
applications in each group, this may result in different cut-off points
for fundable applications in each group.
VI. Award Administration Information
1. Award Notices: If your application is successful, we notify your
U.S. Representative and U.S. Senators and send you a Grant Award
Notification (GAN). We may also notify you informally.
If your application is not evaluated or not selected for funding,
we notify you.
2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements: We identify
administrative and national policy requirements in the application
package and reference these and other requirements in the Applicable
Regulations section of this notice.
We reference the regulations outlining the terms and conditions of
an award in the Applicable Regulations section of this notice and
include these and other specific conditions in the GAN. The GAN also
incorporates your approved application as part of your binding
commitments under the grant.
3. Reporting: At the end of your project period, you must submit a
final performance report, including financial information, as directed
by the Secretary. If you receive a multi-year award, you must submit an
annual performance report that provides the most current performance
and financial expenditure information as specified by the Secretary in
34 CFR 75.118.
4. Performance Measures: Under the Government Performance and
Results Act (GPRA), the Department has developed measures that will
yield information on various aspects of the quality of the Technology
and Media Services for Individuals with Disabilities program. These
measures focus on the extent to which projects are of high quality, are
relevant to the needs of children with disabilities, and contribute to
improving the results for children with disabilities. Data on these
measures will be collected from the projects funded under this
competition.
Grantees also will be required to report information on their
projects' performance in annual reports to the Department (34 CFR
75.590).
VII. Agency Contact
For Further Information Contact: Jane Hauser, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., room 4092, Potomac Center Plaza,
Washington, DC 20202-2600. Telephone: (202) 245-7373.
If you use a telecommunications device for the deaf (TDD), you may
call the Federal Relay Service (FRS) at 1-800-877-8339.
Individuals with disabilities may obtain this document in an
alternative format (e.g., Braille, large print,
[[Page 21254]]
audiotape, or computer diskette) on request by contacting the following
office: The Grants and Contracts Services Team, U.S. Department of
Education, 400 Maryland Avenue, SW., Potomac Center Plaza, Washington,
DC 20202-2550. Telephone: (202) 245-7363.
VIII. Other Information
Electronic Access to This Document: You may view this document, as
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister.
To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is available
free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF, call the U.S.
Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free, at 1-888-293-6498; or in
the Washington, DC, area at (202) 512-1530.
Note: The official version of this document is the document
published in the Federal Register. Free Internet access to the
official edition of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal
Regulations is available on GPO Access at:
http://www.gpoaccess.gov/nara/index.html.
Dated: April 25, 2007.
John H. Hager,
Assistant Secretary for Special Education and Rehabilitative Services.
[FR Doc. E7-8185 Filed 4-27-07; 8:45 am]
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